Different Massage Styles and Their Benefits
If good food is a treat for your taste buds, a good massage is a treat for your body and soul. The soft tissue massages concentrate on your body’s target structures including your muscles, tendons, ligaments, or other connective tissue such as fascia. Therapeutic masseuses use varying techniques for targeted relief with various types of massages. These massages vary in whole range of massage depths, pressures and durations.
1. Sports massage
A sports massage is carried out not just with the understanding of general anatomy and physiology, but also with the individual client’s needs and demands of the sports they play. The massage is targeted to get the individuals in the same or better physical condition compared to when their body was stressed. This is important before the athlete returns to playing their sport again. Generally, sport massages include aggressive techniques to approach muscles more deeply.
Benefits:
Sports massages improve stretching of tissues which cannot be stretched with regular exercises. Specially designed sport massages reduce recovery time and facilitate maximum performance by reducing fatigue.
2. Remedial massage
The aim of a remedial massage is to provide healing treatment for muscles and tendons that get damaged, knotted, impaired, tense or immobile. The remedial massages trace the root cause of discomfort in a muscle and heal both the cause as well as the symptoms, causing the discomfort.
Benefits:
Remedial massages increase blood flow to the affected area with the external pumping and stimulation of the circulatory system. The lymphatic system works close with the circulatory system and hence, flow of lymphatic fluids improves too.
3. Relaxation massage
A relaxation massage is characterised by the smooth and gentle techniques employed to bring about general relaxation, relief from muscular tension and improvement in circulation. This is the most common type of body massage which is performed at the regular day spas. Swedish massage is the most common relaxation massage technique.
Benefits:
The aim of relaxation massage is to make you feel relaxed and rejuvenate your body with gentle but deep strokes. Since this massage type includes gentle strokes, it is less effective against pain relief and muscle stiffness as compared to other aggressive types.
4. Deep tissue massage
A deep tissue massage is more of a union of aggressive sports massages and the gentle relaxation massage. This massage type is characterised by gentle, but deep concentrated strokes aimed at the deeper tissue structures of the muscle and fascia. Though the strokes are gentle like a relaxation massage, the pressure applied would be very intense.
Benefits:
Deep tissue massages have been proved effective for relieving chronic muscle tensions or knots. A good massage by a qualified therapist will loosen muscles, release toxins from the muscle and get your circulation up.
5. Lymphatic drainage
The lymphatic drainage is aimed at stimulating our body’s lymphatic system to aid in toxin and waste product release. It employs light pumping movements in the direction of the lymph nodes. Lymphatic drainage is to be performed only by qualified professionals as it is very different than regular massages.
Benefits:
Lymphatic drainage is highly recommended for individuals with low immunity or regularly affected by flu and cold. It has positive effects on puffiness, swelling, problem skin, cellulite and more.
6. Reflexology
Reflexology can be differentiated from regular massages as it concentrates on the pressure points related to specific body zones and is usually done by touching hands, feet and ears. High pressure, small strokes are applied by the therapist.
Benefits:
Reflexology massages bring about a balance in internal and external bodily functions. It brings about improvement in the function of organs and glands and all systems of the body.
High quality massage therapists are trained in various types and techniques of massages. Choose a massage technique depending on your need for optimum results and feel the tension just ease out!
1. Sports massage
A sports massage is carried out not just with the understanding of general anatomy and physiology, but also with the individual client’s needs and demands of the sports they play. The massage is targeted to get the individuals in the same or better physical condition compared to when their body was stressed. This is important before the athlete returns to playing their sport again. Generally, sport massages include aggressive techniques to approach muscles more deeply.
Benefits:
Sports massages improve stretching of tissues which cannot be stretched with regular exercises. Specially designed sport massages reduce recovery time and facilitate maximum performance by reducing fatigue.
2. Remedial massage
The aim of a remedial massage is to provide healing treatment for muscles and tendons that get damaged, knotted, impaired, tense or immobile. The remedial massages trace the root cause of discomfort in a muscle and heal both the cause as well as the symptoms, causing the discomfort.
Benefits:
Remedial massages increase blood flow to the affected area with the external pumping and stimulation of the circulatory system. The lymphatic system works close with the circulatory system and hence, flow of lymphatic fluids improves too.
3. Relaxation massage
A relaxation massage is characterised by the smooth and gentle techniques employed to bring about general relaxation, relief from muscular tension and improvement in circulation. This is the most common type of body massage which is performed at the regular day spas. Swedish massage is the most common relaxation massage technique.
Benefits:
The aim of relaxation massage is to make you feel relaxed and rejuvenate your body with gentle but deep strokes. Since this massage type includes gentle strokes, it is less effective against pain relief and muscle stiffness as compared to other aggressive types.
4. Deep tissue massage
A deep tissue massage is more of a union of aggressive sports massages and the gentle relaxation massage. This massage type is characterised by gentle, but deep concentrated strokes aimed at the deeper tissue structures of the muscle and fascia. Though the strokes are gentle like a relaxation massage, the pressure applied would be very intense.
Benefits:
Deep tissue massages have been proved effective for relieving chronic muscle tensions or knots. A good massage by a qualified therapist will loosen muscles, release toxins from the muscle and get your circulation up.
5. Lymphatic drainage
The lymphatic drainage is aimed at stimulating our body’s lymphatic system to aid in toxin and waste product release. It employs light pumping movements in the direction of the lymph nodes. Lymphatic drainage is to be performed only by qualified professionals as it is very different than regular massages.
Benefits:
Lymphatic drainage is highly recommended for individuals with low immunity or regularly affected by flu and cold. It has positive effects on puffiness, swelling, problem skin, cellulite and more.
6. Reflexology
Reflexology can be differentiated from regular massages as it concentrates on the pressure points related to specific body zones and is usually done by touching hands, feet and ears. High pressure, small strokes are applied by the therapist.
Benefits:
Reflexology massages bring about a balance in internal and external bodily functions. It brings about improvement in the function of organs and glands and all systems of the body.
High quality massage therapists are trained in various types and techniques of massages. Choose a massage technique depending on your need for optimum results and feel the tension just ease out!
